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Get a Vespa! Cheaper and more cooler, Italian Style! Chrome wont get you home, unless bling is your thing!

just don't pick the 883 Sportster, its a girls bike!
many guys that already own the 883 disguise it making it look like a 1200 Sportster, many people are fooled and cannot tell the 883 and the 1200 Sportsters apart, BUT! any experienced HD Owner can tell them apart just by the sound they make!

It really all comes down to what you want out of your riding experience. When it comes to having a group to hang out with and all sorts of events, it's impossible to beat Harley. I have owned several, and I have had a lot of fun with them.

If you are in it for the experience of riding though, HD kind of misses the mark. They have very crude suspensions and extremely limited power. If carving corners isn't you thing, and you don't need the rush of acceleration, then that isn't going to be an issue for you.

There isn't a Harley out there that you won't be able to handle. They are all easy to ride. Even the big touring bikes have low seats and a really low center of gravity.

I loved my old Ironhead Sportster, but it needed constant work to keep it running.

My '05 883/1200 conversion was a great motorcycle. I should never have sold it.

My '06 Roadking was a terrible motorcycle. It never ran quite right, it handled like a truck, and I didn't even find it all that comfortable. A lot of guys like these. I hated mine and couldn't wait to get rid of it.

My Buell Cyclone is the best compromise in my opinion. It has a great HD sound, and with pipe, jets, and intake, it makes decent (90-100HP) power. It handles really well too.

I am also a huge fan if I4 Japanese sport bikes, but that's just a matter of taste. If you are dead set on a Harley, no amount of talking is going to convince you to give a GSXR a try.

Good luck getting home.

I have been home for a little over 2 years after doing a year of convoy escort security. I wasn't aware there were a lot of "dirtbags" returning from deployments buying 'Busas. It sounds like one of them must have stole that guys girlfriend.

the 883 a girls bike ?i think not.
while it is sluggish stock,you can easily swap the cylinders and cams etc out,making it at least a 1200 (with a lot of balls)and still insure it as a 883.
for those inbreds that call it a girls bike,they're probably riding a 750 or under sniper made machine,(if they ride at all)what about all the real bikers from years past that rode 750-1000 cc sportsters ?

the 883 a girls bike ?i think not.
while it is sluggish stock,you can easily swap the cylinders and cams etc out,making it at least a 1200 (with a lot of balls)and still insure it as a 883.
for those inbreds that call it a girls bike,they're probably riding a 750 or under sniper made machine,(if they ride at all)what about all the real bikers from years past that rode 750-1000 cc sportsters ?

Go to Harley's website. In the lower right hand side of the main page, there is a 'compare bikes' link you can click on. That will show a side by side listing of the specs (seat height, weight, rake, and so on) on whatever bikes you select. Of course you should try them on for size before you make a final decision.

First off, you have my respect for serving your country. It's young men and women like you that make it possible for the rest of us to sleep comfortably at night knowing someone (military, police or otherwise) isn't going to drag us into the street in the middle of the night and beat us senseless.

That said, it all comes down to what YOU like, want and expect from a bike and everyone else's opinions, mine included, don't mean diddly. What used to be called old fashioned is now called retro and everyone has clamored onto that bandwagon. Like the new 2 seater Thunderbird, the new Mustang, the new Chevy pickup that looks like a late '40s model, Yamaha's very cool looking retro instrument panel on it's big V twin (Stratoliner?), everyone has a retro looking V twin and on and on. So when someone says HD is old fashioned, yeah, ok, so what?

First off, I don't own a Harley but have ridden plenty. People who say HD don't handle are the same people who like carving corners at 20 mph over. And they're correct, an Ultra Classic or Road King isn't going to do what they personally want from a bike. Those HD's aren't made for doing that, they're made for covering 500+ miles a day and delivering the rider to their destination unruffled while having to remaining stable in sidewinds, truck turbulence, bad weather and so on. And they'll do that with the throttle thumbscrew set and no hands on the bars. Try that with the hyper sensitive steering on a top of the line sportbike and you'll end up in the ER. Try a 500-800 mile day on a canyon carver and for comfort, you'd consider the rack somewhat below a Serta mattress but way above the bike. That doesn't make the sportbikes bad, just different. Better yet, you being in the military, look at it this way. Howitzers and handguns have very little in common, but each has it's own place and qualities. Both can do their own things very well, but not the other's.

If you're looking for absolute comfort, then you need a Gold Wing, or better yet, a Buick. What many young sportbike riders don't understand is that going slower on a unique machine is just as rewarding as going fast on a cookie cutter speed bike. I have a '51 and '60 Studebaker cars and for comfort, they don't hold a candle to my Dodge Caravan. But cruising up the street and stopping at Sonic for a corndog is a lot more fun in the Stude than in the Caravan. The corndog is the same, but the surroundings make it taste better. My Studes and retro V twin bikes (of any make) are as different from high performance sportbikes as is an artist painting their own painting or them going out and buying a Robert Wood mountain scene at an art show.

Don't listen to anyone here but instead, go look at bikes of any brand and when you find the right one, you'll know it immediately. Bikes are like women, it you have to learn to love them, then it's not true love.

Get the Harley Davidson Fatboy. It's awesome! My uncle has one and he customized the exhaust to be louder. Harley Davidson FOR LIFE!

All your Harley choices are good bikes. Of the ones you listed I personally like the Street Bob, but it's your decision to make, not mine. Don't worry about whether you can handle it or not. You've got some riding experience and Harleys are very easy to ride and easy to handle. I agree with those that have told you if you get something too small you'll get bored with it very soon. Then you'll be out getting that Harley anyway. If you feel the need to try something smaller, take a Motorcycle Safety Foundation (MSF) course. They supply the bikes (250s). You can ride them in the class, learn the proper way to ride and feel more confident riding your Harley.

HD is probably wha you want but I always suggest expanding a persons wish list to include the 2008 Buell and Yamaha XV19 after 2006.
Buell's 1125R or 1125CR (2009) will keep you connected to the HD family but with hi-tech aspects. If you're able to consider cross marrying to a Yamaha, check out a demo ride on any of the XV19 motors , the engine is 1853 cc with 123 foot lbs torque. You'll be riding the V twin motor that is the leader in its class. The Buell 1125 will cost between $10-13 K (their other air-cooled models are less priced) but Yamaha (Stratoliner or Raider) are top end machines at about $18-21 K. (I own one)